Jared Dudley: Devin Booker Has ‘Similar Mentality to Kobe’

Suns head coach, Earl Watson, thinks he can eventually become an MVP candidate (and perhaps the greatest player in franchise history), and teammate Jared Dudley sees a bit of Kobe Bryant in Booker’s approach to the game.

Talk to anyone about Booker and one of the first things they’ll mention is his competitive nature. If you didn’t know any better you’d think they were talking about Michael Jordan or Kobe Bryant.

“I do see a similar mentality to Kobe,” Dudley said.

Booker had his favorite players as a child – growing up in Michigan, he loved longtime Pistons shooting guard Rip Hamilton – but his admiration for Jordan and Bryant ran deep, not only for the championship rings they possessed but for how they were the cornerstones of their respective franchises.

“I idolized those guys,” Booker said. “They were intriguing to me. You hear stories about the competitive edge they brought to the game and how serious they took their craft. … I want to be remembered as one of those guys because at the end of the day this is everything I’ve ever wanted.”